The Russian Futurists are a
Canadian indie pop band based in
Toronto. Their music can be described as
lo-fi,
indie-
electronica
Electronica is both a broad group of electronic-based music styles intended for listening rather than strictly for dancing and a music scene that started in the early 1990s in the United Kingdom. In the United States, the term is mostly used to r ...
fused with a
twee-pop temperament. The band started as a solo project of Matthew Adam Hart (born 1978), and later expanded into a band for live performances.
History
Hart was born and raised in
Cornwall, Ontario.
Influenced by songwriters like
Stephin Merritt of
The Magnetic Fields, he spent his early career creating indie
hip hop music tracks, using improvised gear, in Cornwall and in
Peterborough, Ontario.
Hart's first album under the name The Russian Futurists was released by
Upper Class Recordings
Upper Class Recordings is a Canadian independent record label founded in 2000 in Toronto, Ontario. The electronic music-based Upper Class roster includes The Russian Futurists, Cadence Weapon, DVAS, Christien Summers and The Cansecos.
History
...
in 2000, and titled ''The Method of Modern Love''. The album was praised by
Graham Coxon of
Blur and
Peter Buck of
R.E.M. ''
Uncut
Uncut may refer to:
* ''Uncut'' (film), a 1997 Canadian docudrama film by John Greyson about censorship
* ''Uncut'' (magazine), a monthly British magazine with a focus on music, which began publishing in May 1997
* '' BET: Uncut'', a Black Enter ...
'' magazine called it "one of the most melodically seductive and exhilarating records of recent times". The band also received positive reviews in
Pitchfork Media, ''
Spin
Spin or spinning most often refers to:
* Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thread by twisting fibers together, traditionally by hand spinning
* Spin, the rotation of an object around a central axis
* Spin (propaganda), an intentionally b ...
'', ''
The Guardian'', and ''
XLR8R''.
[Dunlevy, T'Cha.]
The Russian Futurists Know 'Pop' Isn't a Four-Letter Word
, Dose
Dose or Dosage may refer to:
Music
* ''Dose'' (Gov't Mule album), 1998
* ''Dose'' (Latin Playboys album)
* ''Dosage'' (album), by the band Collective Soul
* "Dose" (song), a 2018 song by Ciara
* "Dose", song by Filter from the album '' Short ...
, 2007-11-22. Retrieved on 2008-07-06.
In 2004 the band toured in the U.S., Canada and Spain. They toured with
Peter Bjorn and John,
Caribou
Reindeer (in North American English, known as caribou if wild and ''reindeer'' if domesticated) are deer in the genus ''Rangifer''. For the last few decades, reindeer were assigned to one species, ''Rangifer tarandus'', with about 10 subspe ...
and
Junior Boys.
[The Russian Futurists]
, South by Southwest
South by Southwest, abbreviated as SXSW and colloquially referred to as South By, is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and Convention (meeting), conferences organized jointly that take place in m ...
, 2008. Retrieved on 2008-07-06.
Hart recorded the first three lo-fi Futurists albums in his Toronto home, including 2005's ''Our Thickness''; in June 2005 the album appeared on the !earshot Top 200 chart.
The band's track "Paul Simon" was chosen by Samsung to include on its phones as a featured song. Hart has remixed other artists' singles, including "
Tonight I Have to Leave It
''Our Ill Wills'' is the second album by Stockholm-based Indie pop/ rock band Shout Out Louds. It was released on 25 April 2007 in Sweden and was released by the end of May in several European countries. The United States version was released ...
" by
Shout Out Louds and "
The First Five Times" by
Stars.
For The Russian Futurists' fourth studio album, looking for more sophisticated production, Hart began recording in a New York studio.
The band released the album, ''
The Weight’s On The Wheels'', worldwide on November 16, 2010. It was produced by Hart with the aid of
Michael Musmanno (
Outkast,
Lilys,
Arrested Development). The lead single “Hoeing Weeds Sowing Seeds”, was mixed by Grammy Award winner
Michael Brauer (
Coldplay,
John Mayer
John Clayton Mayer ( ; born October 16, 1977) is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Born and raised in Fairfield County, Connecticut, Mayer attended Berklee College of Music in Boston, but left and moved to Atlanta in 1997 with ...
,
The Bravery). The album, ten tracks in total feature tracks “Horseshoe Fortune”, “Register My Firearms? No Way!”,“100 Shopping Days ‘Til Christmas” and “One Night, One Kiss”, a duet with
Heavy Blinkers
The Heavy Blinkers were a Canadian orchestrated-pop music group, from Halifax, Nova Scotia. Their music is influenced by Brian Wilson, singer
Ruth Minnikin.
The Russian Futurists released a music video for “One Night, One Kiss” off their 2010 fourth studio album, ''The Weight’s on the Wheels''. The songs "Paul Simon", and "Precious Metals" are featured on the ''
NBA 2K11
''NBA 2K11'' is a 2010 basketball simulation video game developed by Visual Concepts and published by 2K Sports. It was released in October 2010 for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Portable, Xbox 360, and Nintend ...
'' soundtrack.
In September 2013, Hart began a 9-year stint as cohost of the morning show on Toronto's
CIND-FM
CIND-FM, branded as ''Indie88'', is an FM radio station in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, broadcasting at 88.1 MHz. The station, which broadcasts an adult album alternative format, had its "soft launch" on July 31, 2013, and had its official launch ...
. He left the station in February 2022.
Hart shifted to producing several hip hop projects in 2022. He was credited with co-producing the track 'Ghost Photo' by Milano Constantine and Big Ghost Ltd. He also produced the EP 'From Russia With Love 2' by Allah Preme of The Umbrella Collective.
The latest Russian Futurists release is a co-production between Hart and Toronto producer Jordache (aka Andrew Carr). The EP entitled 'Don't Die' was released on October 31, 2022.
Discography
Albums
* ''The Method of Modern Love'' (2000)
* ''Let's Get Ready to Crumble'' (2002)
"A Completely Biased Ranking of the 60 Best Canadian Indie Rock Songs of the 00s Part II"
''Vice'', Cam Lindsay Apr 10 2017
* ''Our Thickness
''Our Thickness'' is the third album by The Russian Futurists
The Russian Futurists are a Canadians, Canadian indie pop band based in Toronto. Their music can be described as lo-fi, Independent music, indie-electronica fused with a twee-pop te ...
'' (2005)
* ''Me, Myself And Rye... An Introduction To The Russian Futurists'' (2006, Memphis Industries)
* ''The Weight's on the Wheels
The Weight's on the Wheels is the fourth studio album by Canadian indie pop band The Russian Futurists, released on November 16, 2010 on Upper Class Recordings.
Reception
According to Metacritic, ''The Weight's on the Wheels'' has a score of 63 ...
'' (Nov 2010)
Singles
* ''Paul Simon'' (2006)
* ''Hoeing Weeds Sowing Seeds + Remixes EP'' (2010)
* ''One Night, One Kiss '' (2011)
Compilations
* '' Me Myself & Rye... An Introduction to the Russian Futurists'' (2006)
EPs
* '' Ecole de Neige'' (1998)
* ''Reality Burger With A Side Of Life'' (2019)
* Don't Die (2022)
References
External links
Russian Futurists
official site
The Russian Futurists
Twitter
{{DEFAULTSORT:Russian Futurists, The
Canadian indie pop groups
Musical groups from Toronto
Musical groups established in 2000
Lo-fi music groups
2000 establishments in Ontario
Memphis Industries artists